A simple fingering question

[Whousedtoplay]

I was going through Gary Willis' old book, "Fingerboard Harmony for Bass".
It's about harmony, chord tones, etc... (Nothing technical - it's all about the correct notes), but...
In the chapter, "Second Finger Position" (your second finger on G on the E String), Gary Willis explains how to organize all diatonic triads (plus octaves) in the key of G major in this "Second Finger Position".
Suddenly, I had a question about his D major triad (first inversion) starting on the second fret of the E string - F#. Many years ago, I did not have any questions about the left/fretting hand's fingering.
It was very clear to me how to play it:

But after reading some comments here about the "correct" fingering - a separate finger for each note/pitch, I decided to try some other fingering combinations.

Or maybe, this way:

Any ideas?

 

[BassChuck]

You'll get several responses on this. It all comes down to what's comfortable for you. Frankly I like the first one, it works for me. And I should add, again a personal observation, that different fingers on the same fret (Low A on the E string and D on the A string) is not a good habit if you switch from fretted to fretless (intonation issues), and, to me, it seems clumsy.

 

[neckdive]

What's comfortable to me?
It's A as A string open, but Gary did not mentioned it.

You couldn't use the same pattern for C# or D# with an open string.

Otherwise, I agree with BassChuck regarding same fret, same finger.

 

[Leo Smith]

Do what is comfortable.

Since this exercise is for a closed position arpeggio, then the A note needs to be fretted. I personally go for your second suggestion, to fret A with 3rd finger, and D with the 4th. (I play fretted bass guitars, fwiw)

Also, nothing wrong with using barre on a bass guitar. It IS a guitar, after all, and barre is a valid guitar technique.

 

[Imaginary Pony]

Just to verify about the "same fret, same finger" fingering.
When I'm using that "same fret, same finger" method (I use it quite often), my 4th finger (in this case) frets A on the E string and stays on that 5th fret. I don't lift my finger to fret D on the A string. I just, kind of, move the pressure point/center from the E string onto the A string in my 4th finger.
I would call it - "Barre" on the Bass guitar.
But almost all famous bass teachers are against it.

Ed Friedland isn't.

 

[elgecko]

I wouldn't do any of those. I'd go 1-4-4-2-1.

 

[Leo Smith]

For some bass players that long jump from F# (1st finger) to A (3rd finger) could be uncomfortable.

It can be, but no one said you have to keep your 1st down while you are playing with the 3rd.

Shifting. Shift up to play the 5th and root, shift back to catch the note on the G string.

 

[Leo Smith]

BTW, I -REALLY- like the Humpty graphic...

 

[elgecko]

Would you really fret F#(4th fret) on the D string with your 2nd finger?
It's a little bit uncomfortable - my 3rd finger is getting in the way 2nd finger.

Yup. It's more comfortable for me since my middle finger is already in the neighborhood of the 4th fret while my pinkie is at the 5th. It requires a bit of a shift to get to the top A but it feels more natural to me.

 

[Rocktometrist]

In terms of economy of motion, it seems hard to beat the first option. Since it uses the one finger per fret rule, it means your hand can essentially stay anchored and your fingers can do all the walking (as opposed to having to shift). Personal preference I guess, but that's the way I'd play it 100 times out of 100 without even thinking about it (and I don't see a compelling reason to do it differently--for me, at least)...

 

[Whousedtoplay]

In terms of economy of motion, it seems hard to beat the first option. Since it uses the one finger per fret rule, it means your hand can essentially stay anchored and your fingers can do all the walking (as opposed to having to shift). Personal preference I guess, but that's the way I'd play it 100 times out of 100 without even thinking about it (and I don't see a compelling reason to do it differently--for me, at least)...

Would you lift your 4th finger before you fret D on the A string?

 

[Rocktometrist]

Would you lift your 4th finger before you fret D on the A string?

On the way up I'd shift my pinky more than lift it (just kind of pull it downward and slightly flatten it to quickly fret D on the A string). On the way back down it's admittedly more awkward and I have to to lift my pinky and replant it when going from D to A. Still prefer that option, though. Good idea for something to practice!

 

[Dogbertday]

Would you lift your 4th finger before you fret D on the A string?

Ron Carter's bass method has an exercise and description for this type of technique. Not that Ron's always right but the exercise works really well.

 

[baste_artist]

I'm a big fan of practicing as many logical fingerings you can come up with. Because when it comes time to play, it depends on what notes you are coming from and going to, that will lead to the correct fingering. And you don't want to be thinking about which fingering to use while playing, so practice them all!

These images got me lol and reminiscing of the MSPAINT days...

 

[Carl Hillman]

I would play it 1-3-4-3-1

My reasoning being that it is the most logical fingering for playing those notes ascending OR descending.

1-4-4-3-1 works for ascending, but I can't make my pinkie cleanly and accurately fret both notes on the A and E string on the way down. I have to lift it off the A string and replant it on the E. That makes it impossible for me to connect those two notes in a legato fashion.

1-4-3-2-1 is not something I would do because you end up fretting the D on the A string about an inch behind the fret. That wouldn't work on fretless, and I like the idea of having my fingerings on fretted bass easily transferable to fretless.

 

[somegeezer]

I'd personally go for 14431. The 4s makes sense to use the same finger on, because you can easily just roll to the next one. 13431 makes a little sense too, because you don't have to roll with what is probably your weakest finger. I'd definitely not the next one, where you do a 2 on the 3, to the 1 on the 1, though. Too much of a stretch between first and second finger.

So first image or second image would be fine. Third image is silly.

 

[Clef_de_fa]

For some bass players that long jump from F# (1st finger) to A (3rd finger) could be uncomfortable.

you move your hand a little to make that happen ... Your hand isn't glued to the neck.

If I played it, I would go with either your second exemple or I would do something different that require a shift.

 

[Blake Bass]

I play it 1-4-4-3-1 ..allowing a slight shift or pivot when going from 1-4..I play a lot of fretless, so for me having a consistent fingering system is really crucial for good intonation.

 

[Febs]

Since I generally use 124 fingering in that register, I would probably play it 1 (shift) 4 4 2 (shift) 1.

 

[DwaynieAD]

if she tells you not to stop you're doing it right.